What’s the difference between Zoom, Google Meet and Teams?
Seems to be the flavour of the month(s) as every business makes changes to enable remote-working.
Let me preface this blog with the fact that all of these platforms allow multiple participants to share screens, change backgrounds, chat etc so if you’re just looking for a functional videoconferencing (VC) platform, it doesn’t matter which one you choose. If you’re interested in security issues, news headlines and some novel tips, then read on.
Zoom launched its software back in 2013 and hit the ground running with 1 million users within a few months, 10 million a year later and 40 million by Feb 2015. Over the next few years there was steady growth eventually getting to 10 million DAILY users in December last year. In March this year though, Zoom skyrocketed with 200 million daily meeting participants. In April it was 300 million. Based on this, they must be doing something right, right?
Easy access? Check. Latency below 150 milliseconds (at which point conversations feel unnatural)? Check. A bunch of issues? Check... Zoom was found to be sending unauthorised data to Facebook, routing some calls through servers in China and using conference codes that allowed gate-crashers into random meetings with sometimes hysterical (and deeply concerning) results.
Needless to say Zoom has been addressing these issues but if you ask me, there are better options out there that carry less risk.
Google Meet is an upgraded version of the free Hangouts app Google released a while ago. Like Zoom, it’s a dedicated video-conferencing software but unlike Zoom, it integrates with other G-suite products like google drive and google calendar. Because of its wide adoption in enterprise as well as education, it also has a robust list of security features + encryption. If your business is using the G-suite, give this a go.
Teams differs from Zoom and Meet in that it’s a one-stop-shop for you work. Chat, calendars, documents, collaboration, planners, surveys… It can be a bit overwhelming if you’re just looking for a way to meet virtually.
Having said this, the VC functionality is rich and the rest can be limited/restricted to turn down the noise. The only con I’d raise with Teams is its limitation of how many call participants you can see simultaneously. This has grown from 4 to 9 and they recently announced the intention to move to 49. This might be an issue if you’re running large meetings or e-learning sessions.
If you’re NOT running massive meetings, the long list of operational and collaboration tools (as well as the fact that it’s included with your Office 365 licence) makes this your weapon of choice.
One other great thing Microsoft has done is UserVoice. Here you can see all user-raised items that Microsoft is working on to better their product, and vote for those you would like bumped up in the priority list. Highly recommend keeping an eye on this for those wish-list items.
Summary
Your VC software should match the rest of your business/landscape.
If you’re using Gmail and Google Calendar, use Google Meet. If you’re using Office365, use MS Teams. It’s not worth migrating to a new platform or introducing a VC program that doesn’t integrate with the rest of your operations. I’d also steer clear of Zoom both from a security standpoint and usability; both Google and Microsoft have done a better job of this in my opinion. If you’re still trying to figure out which suite you should be using, email info@theadvicestand.com.au and we’ll sort you out.
So there you have it! Let me know if you’ve had any polarising experiences with these platforms or would like some more info about anything mentioned above.